Wire-stretcher.



NI'IED STATES WVILLIAM E. KIMMEL, OF BERMUDIAN, PENNSYLVANIA.

WIRE-STRETCHER.

SPECIFIGATIQN forming part of Letters Fatent No. 642,462, dated J anuary 30, 1906. Application filed September 13, 1899. Serial No. 730,378. (N0 model.)

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM E. KIMM'EL, of Bermudian, in the county of Adams and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and Improved W'ire-Stretcher, of which the followingis a full, clear,and exact description.

This invention relates to improvements in devices for stretching or taking up the slack in wires stretched between posts, such as in wire fences; and the object is to provide a device for this purpose of very simple and comparatively inexpensive construction by means of which a wire may be quickly and easily stretched.

I will describe a Wire-stretcher embodying my invention and then point out the novel features in the appended claims.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forminga part of this specification, in which similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures.

Figure 1 is a plan view of a wire-stretching device embodying my improvement. Fig. 2 is a section through the line 2 2 of Fig. 1. Fig.

3 is a perspective view of a capstan employed,

and Fig. 4t is a perspective view of an operating-lever employed.

Referring to the drawings, 1 indicates a capstan comprising a tubular portion 2, having diametrically opposite openings 3 to receive the wire to be twisted, and on the outer end of this tubular portion 2 is a flange lto prevent the wire from slipping off said tubular portion.

Extended radially from the tubular portion 2 are arms 5, each provided at one side with depressions or recesses 6, and on the outer end of each arm is a hook portion 7. As a means for rotating the capstanto twist a wire, as will be hereinafter explained, I employ a lever 8, having a circularor ring-like head 9, and at the center of this head portion is a hub 10 to engage in the tubular portion 2 of the capstan. The ring 9 is provided with depressed portions ll, which when the device is operated are coincident or in line with the arms 5 of the capstan. These depressions are below the plane of the arms 5 when the capstan is in position on the turning device, so that the wire will be clear of the head portion 9 after the stretching operation shall have been finished.

On the head portion of the lever is 2. lug 12, designed to engage with the arms when the lever is operated to turn the capstan. This lug 12 is curved on its upper side, so that upon a backward motion of the lever the said lug may pass underneath an arm to engage with its opposite side.

In operation the wire to be stretched is placed in the openings 3, and then the hub 10 of the lever is to be placed in the tubular portion of the capstan. The whole device is then to be turned by engaging the lug 12 in a recess 6 of one of the arms 5. After moving the lever a certain distance, or as far as it may be moved, it is to be moved back to engage the lug with the next arm 5 and the capstan is again turned. This is repeated until the slack is taken up in the wire, after which the lever is to be removed, the capstan remaining in engagement with the wire, with one port-ion of the wire engaging with the hook end 7, as indicated in Fig. 1.

It will be noted in Figs. 1 and 2 that the flange 4 is omitted. Iprefer, however, to employ a capstan having such flange, so as to prevent any possibility of the wire slipping 01f.

Having thus fully described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent- 1. A wire-stretching device, comprising a capstan having a tubular portion provided with opposite openings, arms extended radially from said tubular portion and having hooksat the outer ends and recesses inward of said hooks, a lever having a ring-like head portion having depressions and provided with a hub to engage with the tubular portion of the capstan, and a lug for engaging in the recesses of the arms, substantially as specified.

2. In a wire-stretching device, the combination with a capstan substantially as described, of a turning device comprising a 1e ver having a ring-like head provided with depressions, a hub in said head, and a lug on said head for engaging with the capstan, substantially as specifiedj \VILLIAM E. KIMMEL.

Witnesses:

HOWARD DETTEY, JEREMIAH PENTZ. 

